I am a member of the Mom It Forward Influencer Network. I was compensated for my work in this Tessemae campaign. All opinions are my own.
When Ryan committed to eating better and losing weight about 15 months ago, I joined him. I didn’t follow his meal plan but I jumped right in to learn about nutrition, calories and weight loss. I started reading nutrition labels on all kinds of foods and food ingredients. I learned that for many foods that seem the same on the outside, they still vary a lot on the outside. You can look at two products side by side that look almost identical but they can vary dramatically when it comes to how much protein, fiber, and calories they have. One might have five ingredients total while another has 20+.
I enjoy a good salad, so when I started reading labels it didn’t take me long to look at the nutrition label on salad dressing. I quickly learned that salad dressings are not all made equally.
Ranch is American’s #1 dressing, but most brands of ranch dressing are full of sugar, preservatives and artificial ingredients. Tessemae’s is different. Tessemae’s Creamy Ranch Dressing uses only clean, simple and real ingredients so you can enjoy ranch dressing without the guilt. Plus, it’s made with the creamy texture that you’ve probably experienced in other brands of creamy dressing. If you want a more natural dressing that doesn’t compromise on texture, this is the one for you.
If ranch isn’t your thing, you can still turn to Tessemae’s for salad dressing in your variety that is clean, simple and real. Tessemae’s has 25 dressings, marinades and condiments available and they all feature, real & whole ingredients that are USDA-organic. You can find Tessemae’s products at Kroger and Walmart.
I really enjoy salad, so I eat it regularly. I often get asked how I can stand to eat it so often! I don’t eat it because I have to, I eat it because I want to. For me, making small changes can make a big difference between an okay salad and a great one. 5 tips for improving your salad:
1. Salad dressing. Choosing a salad dressing that is full of sugar and artificial can turn your otherwise natural salad into a really unnatural one. Plus, salad dressing adds so much when it comes to flavor that finding a salad dressing that you really enjoy can make you enjoy the salad itself so much more. My personal favorites are caesar and italian dressings.
2. Fresh ingredients. In a pinch I’ve grabbed a pre-made salad from a local deli. For me, having a salad that has sat out for too long really makes it less enticing. I can’t stand wilted greens or veggies that have lost their crispness or began to get discolored. Making my own salad makes a big difference! Plus, I love being able to control how much of each ingredient is included.
3. The temperature trick. While I like my salads fresh, I don’t like them to be cold. I can eat a cold salad, but I realized several years ago that I LOVED restaurant salads. I thought this was odd because I don’t care for deli salads. I read online that many people prefer restaurant salads because they are served at room temperature, while homemade or deli salads are usually made with cold ingredients and in the case of deli salads, put back in the cooler so they are still cold when consumed. I sometimes make my salad about half an hour before I want to eat it so it has time to adjust to room temp without getting wilted or too warm and it does seem to make a difference.
4. Add some color. Or just a variety of ingredients. Salads that are just greens with a little bit of carrots will get pretty boring after a few days. I swap out which veggies I use to make my salads seem new and different every now and then.
5. Protein. If you find salad to not be filling enough it’s probably because you aren’t including enough protein to make it filling. I never really get tired of having chicken in my salads but if you’re vegetarian or prefer more varied options you can get creative and include chickpeas, beans, hard-boiled eggs or nuts instead.
Hi there! I am Emily Evert, the owner of Emily Reviews. I am 28 and live in a small town in Michigan with my boyfriend Ryan and our two pugs. I have a large family and I adore my nieces and nephews. I love reading memoirs, and learning about child development and psychology. I love watching The Game of Thrones, Teen Mom, Sister Wives and Veep. I like listening to Jason Isbell, John Prine, and other alt-country or Americana music. I created Emily Reviews as a creative outlet to share my life and the products that I love with others.
This post currently has 37 responses.
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Michelle S
I started watching my sodium in the last year and just like sugar, sodium is in a lot of the same products. I had to switch my bread and salad dressing. Reading the labels is so important these days.
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Karen Glatt
This is so true about these foods adding calories to a diet. I get the bread that has only 10o calories and that is all I eat in one setting. I get my yogurt with less sugar in it. And I know granola bars are not good if eaten too often.
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Cynthia R
That’s why I mainly stick with meats and vegetables. I can eat as many calories, portion sizes of meats and veggies and I’m good but throw in yogurt and a granola bar and my weight goes up.
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Amber Ludwig
Yes!! I remember learning about dressing , I sure do love salads but I need dressing!! I will have to try the brand you suggested!! I try to avoid unnecessary carbs though, so I don’t worry much about bread or granola!
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Laurie P
Salad dressing can be sneaky indeed! Very informative post!
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Deb E
Oh man, bread is the devil! I went gluten-free years ago and no longer have puffiness and very little inflammation issues. I know to stay far away from it! I’m trying to increase my good fats, so I use those for my salad dressings.
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Lauryn R
These are great tips for making your salad better! I am also a huge fan of salads, they are delicious! 🙂 I definitely find that switching up my veggies and/or dressing every other day or so usually makes it more exciting to eat.
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Danielle S
What great tips! And that salad dressing sounds so delicious. I’m just going to have to try it!
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shannon fowler
I love these tips. I love a fresh healthy salad. I love making healthy taco salads or fiesta salads.
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Jeanine Carlson
We eat salad all the time. I never thought to leave it for a while to warm up. I guess I like it either way.
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Jamie S
I also love a good salad which includes many different veggies, like peas or mushrooms or even avocado. And my favorite is egg. This tip about Tessamae’s ranch is the best – I quit eating ranch years ago due to how bad it typically is for you. Yet, occasionally I still wouldn’t mind some ranch – if I run out of poppyseed that is! 🙂
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I normally have chicken, pepperoni, and bacon on my salad, makes it feeling and I like to add different ingredients like beets or olives to make it different.
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Grace H
I had never heard of the temperature trick. That is a good thing to know. I eat salads everyday, but I have a hard time keeping the lettuce fresh.
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desiree
i do not like nothing in sald except the cuke and salade and i eat them for lunch and dinner
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Darcy Koch
I previously very seldom read labels when I grocery shopped. Recently I have been paying more attention to what exactly is in the products I buy. I have several digestive disorders so I am trying hard to follow what I read is good for me and what to avoid.
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Brandon Sparks
Thanks for the great info. This is what I really needed to know about salad dressing. Keep the great info coming.. I love reading it and learning what I didn’t know.
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I always have loved salad as it is sometimes too hot for veges! I agree that fresh ingredients can make the world of difference
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Of course, I choose the right dressing for my salad that can make or break its flavor. Protein was also a part of my bowl either chicken or egg, and I already consider it as a complete meal.
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The temperature trick is something new I learned today. I also try to choose the right dressing for a specific type of salad. Years and years ago, I thought “salad” only meant greens, but now I enjoy salad with grilled chicken or pork chunks.
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I have been wanting to try this for a while! I am adding it to my list for the grocery store!
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Yummy, this dressing looks great! I like to add all sorts of ingredients to my salad–but no olives, I do not like olives.
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I like your “temperature thick”. I hat my salads cold, especially on a winter day. And I agree with you on the dressing. It’s nice to change it up 🙂
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Those are great great ways to improve your salad. Those dressings look amazing.. I get so bored with salad sometimes. Be wonderful to have several different delicious dressings on hand.
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I love a good salad, and no salad is complete for me without some kind of protein in it. I like eggs or chicken the best.
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I truly think the key to many salads is on the dressing! It can either make it wonderful or just plain boring
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I had never thought about the effect of letting salad ingredients reach room temperature. I might try this and see if my picky husband can be persuaded to eat more salad.
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Wendy Polisi
I’ve never tried this salad dressing before and I would love to try it! I love making salad at home and my husband really loves it! I’m sure, it would be fantastic if I will try this one.
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Victoria Heckstall
This one is fantastic! I’ve tried it before and it’s really amazing dressing to the salad.
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Rosey
Tessemae is so good. It’s got just the right creamy touch to make a salad pop.
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Elizabeth O.
I have always loved salads! I try to gather as much salad recipes as I can! And it’s alwdys nice to try different dressings as well! I’d love to give this brand a try!
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I never able to find out any good salad dressing. You are right– what is the point of having salad full of sugar and other artificial flavors.
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I am obsessed with Tessemae!! They seriously need to hire me because I can’t stop raving about them and how they are Whole30 friendly!
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Lynne B
I love your salad suggestions. Rachael Ray has said it makes no sense to have a million bottles of salad dressing in your fridge when it’s so easy to make your own. While I agree with her on the former, I have yet to try the latter. That would be a great way to keep track of what is actually going in your salad.
I know…. those sneaky calories come from every where. Ketchup and Bar-B-Q sauce hide sugar too. I have cut out most of those foods that you mentioned. If I eat a granola bar, I cut it in half and only eat half at a time.